Apple must really feel the competition heating up, because Phil Schiller just can't say enough about Android these days. In an interview with Reuters on Wednesday, Schiller -- Apple's senior vice president of worldwide marketing -- said that most Android users are running old software because updates are slow to roll out.

"With their own data, only 16 percent of Android users are on year-old version of the operating system," Schiller said. "Over 50 percent are still on software that is two years old. A really big difference."

It's important to note that each Android OS update needs to be tested for several different hardware makers to make sure it's right for each one.

Further, Schiller trash talked the new Samsung Galaxy S IV, saying that it will be shipped with a year-old operating system because Android has a fragmentation issue.

"And that extends to the news we are hearing this week that the Samsung Galaxy S4 is being rumored to ship with an OS that is nearly a year old," Schiller said. "Customers will have to wait to get an update."

Android version install base as of March 4, 2013 [Image Source: Android.com]

"At Apple we know that it's not just enough to have products pumped out in large numbers," Schiller said. "You have to love and use them. There is a lot of data showing a big disparity there."

Schiller was bad-mouthing Android earlier this week in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, where he said that iPhone users are more satisfied with their smartphone experience than Android users and that Androids are the kinds of phones given as free replacements to feature phones. He added that Android phones make you "sign up for nine accounts" out of the box because it isn't as seamless of an experience as iOS -- where Apple is responsible for both hardware and software.

Apple's Phil Schiller posing with an iPad mini

It's interesting that Apple is starting to dig into Samsung and Android right around the release of the Samsung Galaxy S IV, which is due to make its first appearance today at the 7 p.m. ET launch event at Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan. The Samsung Galaxy S III made a big splash in the smartphone world, and the greater specs of the Galaxy S IV should mean increased popularity of the line.

The positive of Samsung going with their own OS and ecosystem is that they're so dominant with the "what is there to buy other than an iPhone" crowd is that they could actually have a non-fragmented platform by splitting off from Android and using their own OS.

A unified platform with a lot of users would be massive for developers and improve the customer experience. A narrow set of mobile devices to optimize for is proven to be better than making less while supporting a fragmented platform. Bad displays and crappy UIs would still be standard, this is Samsung we're talking about, but at least the hardware/software stack would be unified.

I wonder how much of a neckbeard defection there would be if Samsung did this. For all the talk of Android being free and open around here, this place has a huge bias towards Samsung despite the fact that HTC is killing it with their hardware right now. These suckers totally eat up Samsung's marketing, only explanation why they'd pass up on better products that cost as much or less.

I still don't think Samsung will do this though, a break from Android would be so disruptive and risky that I'm not sure it'd be worth it.

Without Samsung anothre android manufacturer would have become them, so I disagree with the sentiment, although I do see how appl fanboy tries to move the flappy lipped loser ios talking points over to a "i wish android did this" side.

It's not working. Apple is losing, and I've seen that in person. "Oh, how did you do that !? " says the appl fan to the one holding the android device. THAT'S what's going on in the real world.

The real world doesn't care about fragmentation or any of that crap - you click the google store and your device takes what works, most often for free - another thing the applheads hate.

You accuse people of being applyheads or fanboys... but you talk like you're a foot soldier in the cell phone world war. I just don't see the point, Android/Samsung fans outnumber Apple in this thread nearly 10-1.

What bothers you so much about someone having a phone different than yours? It's a phone. The vast majority of iPhone users could care less what you think or what you chose to use... why do you care so much about what they use?